Many businesses and other enterprises use a variety of computer systems that are specially adapted for certain purposes. For example, a manufacturing division of an enterprise may use one kind of computer system specifically designed to handle manufacturing data while the sales division of the same enterprise may use another kind of system for sales information. The engineering division of the enterprise may use an entirely different computer system as well. Using different computer systems for different divisions of an enterprise makes sense because each kind of computer system will provide certain strengths that suit that division.
Although different divisions within an enterprise may use different computer systems, there are advantages to sharing data across an entire enterprise. For example, an individual in the sales division may need to know the current inventory levels for a product in the manufacturing division to determine what price should be set for the product. One solution to this problem is to provide hard copies of reports from different divisions of an enterprise to certain key individuals in the enterprise. This procedure is disadvantageous because it can overwhelm an individual with much more information than the individual needs and because the data in the hard copies of the report can be out of date by the time that the individual reviews it. Another solution to this problem is to use emulator computers that allow an individual to use a single computer to access more than one computer system. This procedure is also disadvantageous because the individual is required to learn a new interface and a new computer language for each computer system that he is to access. Thus, there is a need for an enterprise-wide computer system that can connect to a variety of computer systems, retrieve data from these systems, and present data to an individual in a standardized, easy-to-learn format.